Bible Study September 21, 2023

Ecclesiastes 12:1, 13 – 24 (ESV)

12 “Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, “I have no pleasure in them” 13 The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. 14 For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.”

Many people in this life seek fame, fortune, comfort, status all the things that sound good but leave us empty. King Solomon seemed to have everything the world could offer but it was not enough to satisfy him. Anything we do to find satisfaction may disappoint us in the long run if we do not keep the proper perspective.

Solomon’s end came in despair he had it all and lost it all. There is much to say about what the scriptures teach us if we gain the whole world and lose our soul then life is wasted. Solomon could have had all he had, we can have all we have but the focus must be on Jesus and that we are where we are because we are favored in His sight.

What would each of our lives look like if we “chased after God” rather than the stuff we have. God will provide we must set our priorities and make Him first He will then supply all we need.

In order to put things in priority the question arises “when do we start?” The answer we all know is right now. What are the blessings of God in your life right now? What do you value from God, from the world? What is most important? Changing or shifting what is important will require some sacrifice. It may not be easy in all areas. Solomon had the key to a life of fulfillment in God he let it get away. But it is worthwhile.

Make Him your center, let His priorities become your priorities.

God Bless.

Bible Study September 20, 2023

2 Corinthians 4:7-10 (ESV)

7 “But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. 8 We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 10 always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.”

Wow did I need this today? It seems at times that Satan is constantly on attack it seems that way because he always is on attack. There are times in our lives that we are bombarded with stuff and it seems at times we are unable to cope with it. But keep in mind God is greater than anything Satan can do to us.

Satan is at work to bring us down. As we live our lives we must understand that when we grow in character, faith, and belief that we will defeat Satan and his attempts to destroy us, our ministries, our families, everything he can down he will and then with all that he offers an eternity in hell away from God. Seems like an easy choice to make.

We are attacked, hunted down, perplexed anything negative Satan will do and yet people follow after him in many cases diligently. 2 Corinthians tells us when things happen to us do not get discouraged. We carry Jesus’ death with us as a treasure in cracked and chipped earthen vessels. This gives the poser and passion to get up and move again.

We need to brace for the next blow because it will come as long as we are faithful to Jesus satan will attack. We may also be picking ourselves up from the last but Jesus is there to help us fight back and get back in the fight once again.

With Jesus in our life we may be knocked down but never knocked out.

God Bless.

Bible Study September 19, 2023

Exodus 18:18-19 (ESV)

18 “You and the people with you will certainly wear yourselves out, for the thing is too heavy for you. You are not able to do it alone. 19 Now obey my voice; I will give you advice, and God be with you! You shall represent the people before God and bring their cases to God,”

In my business career I was privileged to work for some great people and some not so great. One in particular fits in the second category. I seldom called him because I didn’t think I needed to talk to him. He said to me one day “you never call me as much as the other managers do.” I have a problem sometimes talking before I think lots of responses run through my mind so I have learned to think then speak. I explained to him I was hired to do the job they had placed me in. I guess he felt he could do the job better than me.

However, one of the difficult things for me was to delegate but it makes the job easier. Moses may have thought he could do the job better than anyone else until his father-in-law Jethro spoke to him. Jethro had a great idea for Moses to share the work – delegate.

Its not easy to delegate it takes trust, competence, and a willingness to give up control. But when you do it gives you an opportunity to build into the lives of your friends and associates. By delegating we add value to others. We will build new relationships and new bonds of friendship.

If we are a controller time to turn it over.

God Bless.

Bible Verses from Message of September 17, 2023

Scripture reference – Ephesians 4:7-17

Scripture describes the experience of unity – Psalm 133:1 “Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity.”

“Complete my joy of being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.” Philippians 2:2.

Satan will sir up unbelievers “19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do[b] such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Galatians 5:19-21.

Christian unity is a high call “for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance. Philippians 1:19.

Unity refines us – “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.” 1 Peter 2:24.

That’s why we should “eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” Ephesians 4:3.

Paul tells us to “22 to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, 23 and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, 24 and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.” Ephesians 4:22-24.

Jesus gave us this commandment “34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.” John 13:34.

Jesus envisioned a community willing to “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves” and “but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.” Philippians 2:3 & 7.

The pursuit of unity is hard because love is costly.

Bible Study September 18, 2023

John 14:6-7 (ESV)

6 “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”

I mentioned yesterday I used this passage of scripture in a recent celebration of life service. I shared that Jesus had gone away after calming the disciples minds and hearts to build our mansion. He is doing that as we await His return.

I was reading a reference to this passage which stated this is a both a positive and negative promise in the verse. Jesus laid out what would happen by choosing either direction – eternal heaven or eternal hell. Once we die our choice has been made. I encouraged people at this celebration of life to find Jesus by seeking Him or contacting me to discuss how they can.

People who do not know Jesus only go through the motions of life; Jesus came to give us abundant life. We may be a nice person but without a relationship we will not spend our lives with Jesus but we will spend eternity elsewhere.

In order to spend eternity in heaven we must be certain we know Him. Recognize our sin, repent, ask to be forgiven, thank Him for what He did on the cross and make Him Lord of your life. We do that by putting Him first.

Jesus is the “way, the truth, and the life.”

God Bless.

Bible Study September 16, 2023

Matthew 7:13 – 14 (ESV)

13 “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.”

I find Jesus words here different today than I had read them before. There are times when we read the scriptures and we see them directing a special message to us. I had always read that you have two gates one is narrow the other much wider. Today I saw it differently. He doesn’t begin by saying you have a choice but He says, “Enter the narrow gate.” Very specific which gate you enter. There are no options.

The narrow gate to the road may be farther down the fence row. It may require a few more steps. It may take longer for one to realize that the narrow gate is the right gate. You will find more people going through the wide gate and the wide gate will be passed through by those who:

• Do not follow the scriptures,
• Those who desire to rewrite the scriptures to satisfy their wants and desires,
• Those who simply think their way is better than Jesus’ way,
• Some just do not like to follow the Master.

But He makes it clear there is only one gate and it is a narrow gate. There is only one way to eternal life and that is the narrow gate that leads us there, This road will be harder the ground may not be as soft as you would like, you may stumble over a rock, there may be a snake in the road. He never promised us an easy walk but He did promise us an eternal home in Heaven as we grow in the image of Christ.

Look at the gates but choose the narrow one.

God Bless.

Bible Study September 15, 2023

Luke 7:33-34 (ESV)

33 “For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’ 34 The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’

Seems like sometime no matter who you are or what you say it is wrong. We all know people who are constantly criticizing someone or something. They just seem to have what I call a “critical spirit” within them. They didn’t like what Jesus did, what John the Baptist did. I used to have a zone manager in the company I worked for and that person would seldom complement anyone or anything but they were excellent at criticizing everything. Interestingly no one wanted to be around them.

The Pharisees and Sadducees criticized Jesus for everything He did and when He did something good like healing on the sabbath they criticized Him for healing people. People criticized John for not drinking wine and Jesus for drinking wine. Religious leaders in the Jesus’ day could always find something to criticize Jesus for.

I have been criticized for decisions I made; you have been criticized for decisions you have made that is the nature of society. The church is criticized for not loving people when indeed it does love people, some have said the church is not loving because it does not accept all people. The church should be the one to accept all people after all the mission of the church is to build the kingdom.

A situation came up the other day and I was talking with someone about it. I have learned over the years if I am upset and want to respond in write it down and sleep on it before responding, I received that advice the other day as a reminder., thank you for that reminder.

We are blessed with two ears and one mouth; we should listen twice as much as we talk.

God Bless.

Bible Study September 14, 2023

Matthew 22:31 – 33 (ESV)

31 “And as for the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was said to you by God: 32 ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not God of the dead, but of the living.” 33 And when the crowd heard it, they were astonished at his teaching.”

Hope. This is a simple short word that has everlasting impact on a believer. It is what we look forward to our hope is in a future in heaven with God the Father, Jesus His Son, and the Holy Spirit. Hope for a future that is eternal. We do not want to get caught up in this world thinking it is all there is.

Tomorrow I will celebrate the second celebration of life for two men this week. On Tuesday it was for a man who had been blessed with ninety-five years on this earth. On Friday one for a man who had seventy-three years on this earth. Tuesday after sharing the unique things of this man’s life I shared from Luke 16 the story of Lazarus and the rich man. Lazarus was in Abraham’s bosom while the rich man looked up from his grave and saw Lazarus from his eternity. I asked them if they had any questions. I would love to talk to them about eternity. Friday I am sharing from the fourteenth chapter of John Gospel concerning Jesus promise to return to take us to our mansion in heaven.

Many people spend much of their waking lives involved in all that is going on forgetting the eternal. We tend to live in the physical realm. God is eternal, we are eternal. We should think of eternity in the realm of God is eternal and we are created to spend eternity with Him.

Jesus died for our eternity let us live for the “hope” that He has placed within us.

God Bless.

Bible Study September 13, 2023

Romans 8:9-10 (ESV)

9 “You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. 10 But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness.”

Man is composed of three things a physical body, a soul (mind) and a spirit. However, man seems to enjoy living by the dictates of his body than his spirit. We should be living by the Spirit.

Hydrangeas are an interesting flowering plant. Cindy and I had them in our yard in Ohio and we simply could not get them to bloom. Even the man living behind us who was a member of the Hosta Society couldn’t help. I read today that if you plant rusty nails with a pink-blooming hydrangea it will change colors to blue. The color is affected by the pH factor in the soil. A change was made to the soil.

Do we need to change things in our life to make us bloom or maybe bloom brighter? Can we get away from being led by what our body wants and desires to what the Spirit desires for us? What would those changes look like? What if I decided to lose some weight so I cut back on or cut out sugar from my diet? Could we live with the reducing our desire for sugar?

Sometime we need to add an outside factor that we are not used to. You normally would not plant nails with a flower. You may not read the scriptures on a daily basis but give it a try even if you read the same scripture for a week or more until it gets rooted in your spirit. Satan may tell you that you do not pray enough don’t let him be the judge you judge yourself and if you are guilty then make some changes. This is one I need to do more.

Simply adding something or making a change can radically cause you to bloom.

God Bless.